Exhibition to celebrate the 30th Anniversary of the Eugenio Granell Foundation
27 may, 2025 – 2026
Rooms 1, 2 and 3. Second floor. (Room 1 ends September 21).
Curator: Eduardo Valiña
The Eugenio Granell Foundation opens on May 27, at 7:00 p.m., the exhibition Granell Turns 30, a project that commemorates the museum’s thirtieth anniversary.
The Eugenio Granell Foundation was created in Santiago de Compostela at the end of March 1995, a project that was designed as one of the most important milestones of Galician, Spanish, and international Surrealism.
The institution was formed as a place to hold an extensive heritage that was made up of different artworks, including part of Eugenio Granell’s most representative work, a collection of avant-garde works of art by the 20th century’s most representative artists of the movements of plastic transformation, a collection of ethnic art, as well as other elements that completed an immense legacy that was incorporated into a city undergoing a human transformation, at a cultural and architectural level.
From that beginning to the present day, the Granell Foundation has gone through different stages but always with the same objective: protecting, disseminating, and studying the legacy of Granell and Surrealism, from different perspectives and giving the opportunity to many artists to show their work as well as involving different audiences locally and internationally.
On the other hand, the institution has been transforming over time, expanding its legacy and shaping its configuration, from the board of trustees to the staff, overcoming economic crises and endeavouring to maintain a high quality in its initiatives.
We cannot forget fundamental events in this journey such as the death of Eugenio Granell in 2001 and, later, that of another fundamental pillar, Amparo Segarra in 2007.
This exhibition features a tour of different periods in Eugenio Granell’s art and life, starting from his link with Galicia as a reference for much of his output throughout his life; in this regard, a special allusion is made to the work of his brother, Mario Granell.
The project also highlights the artist’s ideology as a prominent member of the POUM party, his active participation during the Spanish Civil War, and his subsequent exile that will would take him to places such as Santo Domingo, Guatemala, and Puerto Rico before settling down in the United States.
The exhibition refers to important people and events in the life of the intellectual, especially his inseparable companion Amparo Segarra, his encounter with André Bretón in Santo Domingo, his relationship with Marcel Duchamp, and the influence of different artists, thinkers, and intellectuals in his theoretical research and as the basis of some works during his initial period.
Completing the exhibition is a documentary and bibliographic section, which highlights the importance of Granell’s legacy as a multifaceted artist who created the greatest Galician heritage of the historical avant-garde.
